If you watch CNN at all, you have undoubtedly seen attorney Elie Honig, CNN Senior Legal Analyst, especially over the past several months. Elie always comes off very knowledgeable about any legal matter that he is asked about and he has an easy going and affable manner about him that allows him to help explain complicated and nuanced legal situations quickly and in an understandable way. Elie, as you’ll hear, has an impressive pedigree to include Rutgers University and Harvard Law School, followed by work as an assistant US attorney with the well-known office of the Southern Distrct of New York (SDNY) in Manhattan. That position was followed by several years working as an assistant Attorney General with the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. Currently, he is a special counsel at Lowenstein Sandler. In addition to the work he does for CNN, Elie teaches at Rutgers and serves as the executive director of the Rutgers Institute for Secure Communities. He has authored two books, here and here, and he hosts two podcasts as well, here and here. Elie has carved out an interesting career path for himself and I enjoyed talking with him on this episode. I hope you enjoy it!
I have known of attorney Mark Zaid by reputation for many years, given my own security clearance practice. I recently ran across Mark’s name again in the July/August 2023 issue of the Washington Lawyer Magazine which gets distributed to all DC bar members. The article was titled “Keeping Up with Pioneers in Evolving Practices” and it discussed Mark’s work over the years. His law practice, based in Washington, DC, has included representing the families of victims of the 1988 terrorist bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. He has a broad practice to include representing government whistleblowers and intelligence community members with security clearance issues. He has a website to help whistleblowers. We also discussed his Freedom of Information/Privacy Act practice on this episode of the podcast. As you’ll hear, Mark has an affable and engaging personality and it is no wonder that he appears on various news programs as an expert commentator on a very regular basis! I think you’ll like hearing his story on this episode of the podcast.
Robert Lockwood is a well-known and highly respected attorney in Alabama. He practiced with a large Huntsville law firm for over 25 years before deciding to go out on his own earlier this year. You can find Robert’s information at his two websites, LockwoodLawyers.com and EmployingAlabama.com As I mentioned to Robert on the podcast, I don't know where he found the time, between his law practice and other commitments, to do all of the outside work that he has done. He is the past president of several organizations to include the Huntsville-Madison County Bar Association, the Madison County Volunteer Lawyers Program and the Huntsville Rotary club, among other organizations he has worked with and for. He also served for a long time and continues to work presently as member of the Alabama Board of Law examiners. As you'll hear on the podcast, Robert is looking forward to the next chapter of his legal career. I think you will enjoy hearing his story.
Joe Milowic is the director of well-being and serves as of counsel for Quinn Emanuel. He has previously been selected as a New York Super Lawyer in Intellectual Property and he was also chosen as a Global Fellow by the Federal Circuit Bar Association in recognition of his commitment to leadership and cooperation in the global legal community. I first learned about Joe from the July/August 2023 issue of the Washington Lawyer Magazine which gets distributed to all DC bar members. The article was titled “The Power of Vulnerability” and it discussed the Lawyers Depression Project which was co-founded by Joe. I enjoyed getting to know Joe’s story on this episode of the podcast and learning about the very important work that he is doing for the legal profession.
This podcast features attorney Laura Terrell. Laura has a broad legal background to include attending the University of Virginia Law School, “big law” partnerships, and stints serving at the White House and Department of Justice. Interestingly, she has now turned her focus and work into serving as an executive coach. Oftentimes, lawyers, like all professionals, can get stuck in a rut and not be able to clearly see the next step in their career or how they want things to look for themselves professionally. Laura offers guidance in many areas that can assist both young lawyers and mid-level or older lawyers as they look to change, morph, and/or improve their legal careers. Her website, www.LauraTerrell.com, offers a lot of information on how she can help professionals improve their careers. I enjoyed getting to know Laura’s story on this episode of the podcast.
Attorney Mac Martinson is a partner with the Huntsville law firm of Martinson and Beason. I say this a lot on this episode of the podcast and here I go again…Mac and his law firm are highly respected as lawyers and as people who give back to our community. This law firm was founded by Mac’s grandfather back in 1937 and has been in existence ever since then. Mac has many accolades to his name for practicing law at a very high level, earning the admiration of his peers to include being AV rated by Martindale Hubbell as well as his recent selection as the Real Estate Lawyer of the Year by Best lawyers in America. I enjoyed getting to know Mac’s story on this episode of the podcast. You might also enjoy listening to the podcast I did with his brother and law partner, Doug Martinson, and, also, his law partner Morris Lilienthal.
As I say on the introduction of this podcast, I have never seen the arc of a career like this – from a longtime professional magician to law school to a successful law firm he founded and now a coach for lawyers and an author on how to start and grow a successful law firm. Those are quite a few accomplishments and transition packed into one career! Patrick Slaughter, as you'll hear, is very engaging. He is an expert in immigration law and family law. In fact, he runs an immigration law bootcamp and, if you're looking to get into the field of immigration law, from my perspective, this is an absolute must do. Immigration law is complicated and nuanced and Patrick makes it understandable for lawyers to quickly learn so that they can take good care of their immigration clients. He has also started a coaching practice for lawyers who want to start their own firm and have a thriving law practice. The start point, though, would be to get a copy of Patrick's new book that will be out soon: “The Law Firm Blueprint: Your Fast Track to $100K Working Only 4 Days a Week.” I have read an advance copy of this book. It is thorough and detailed and will get a lawyer to where he or she needs to be by following his blueprint. I hope you enjoy hearing Patrick’s story on this episode of the podcast.
After a long and distinguished career serving our country, DOD Administrative Judge Michael (Mike) Leonard recently retired. Mike served for the last twenty years as an Administrative Judge with the Department of Defense (DOD) Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA) where he heard and decided hundreds of security clearance cases over his tenure. On one hand, I am glad that he retired so that I could do this podcast with him. On the other hand, security clearance applicants who have to go to a hearing regarding their clearance have lost a wise, tempered, smart and reflective judge to possibly hear their administrative case. Of course, there are still many fair and highly respected judges at DOD DOHA, but the loss of Mike will definitely be felt. I was glad to learn his history on this episode of the podcast to include his U.S Army JAG Corps experience and DOHA Department Counsel work before he became a DOHA judge. I hope you enjoy hearing his professional story followed by his bold retirement move to Germany!
Angie Robertson is a talented and highly respected consumer lawyer based out of Chicago, Illinois. Angie is a partner with the consumer law firm of Philipps and Philipps, Ltd. As an aside, Episode 4 of the Next Lawyer Up podcast features an interview with the founder of Philipps and Philipps, Ltd., attorney Dave Philipps. Angie is an exceptional legal writer and researcher and I know this from first-hand experience by working with her on a number of consumer law cases over the years. Angie also does a lot of work for the consumer law bar in our country. She is on the national board of directors for the NACA (National Association of Consumer Advocates) and she also serves as the Illinois co-chair for NACA. In recognition of her work, Angie was recently named as an Illinois Super Lawyer by Thompson Reuters. I was interested to learn about Angie’s journey from Nebraska to Chicago on this episode of the podcast. I hope you enjoy it
Attorney Michael Timberlake is a partner with the long-standing and highly regarded law firm of Timberlake and League. Michael is AV rated by Martindale Hubbell and he is also consistently selected for Best Lawyers. His law firm has very well-known and respected lawyers and they have been practicing personal injury law for many years. The law firm is also deeply embedded in the community and anyone who lives in North Alabama is familiar with the show they are on every Sunday night, LawCall, at 10:30pm on ABC WAAY Channel 31. All of the lawyers at this firm are experts in their field. You can also listen to a podcast that I did with one of Michael’s partners, Will League, at this link. I enjoyed talking to Michael on this episode of the podcast and I hope he didn’t take offense at my complaining of appearing at the late hour of 10:30pm on LawCall since I am way more of an early morning person!